Religion and traditional values in East Asia

Jacobs Foundation Conference 2010 - Schloss Marbach, Germany - 28-30 April 2010

Religion and traditional values in East Asia

The relevance of generational divides in East Asia origin surveys

Henk Vinken

Pyrrhula BVNetherlands

Jacobs Foundation Conference 2010 – Schloss Marbach, Germany – 28–30 April 2010


Central themes in religious studies

Secularization / modernizationIndividualized religions / postmodernization

Supply side change / rational choice



Concepts and research fundamentally Western


Hofstede: “Issues prominent in the researcher’s culture but not necessarily relevant to the respondents will be included, and issues crucial in the respondents’ culture but not in the researchers’ may

be overlooked”.

‘Global’ values surveys compare Western valuesUnlikely to cover all Western core notions, or

non-Western notions of religious values and practices


East Asian (and Western postmodern?)religious values and practices


SyncreticismPolytheism

Not one value or practice of pinnacle importanceTranscendent and worldy deities

Practices without expert mediationThis-worldy focus, including material benefits

Embedded in family and bureaucracy(inseparable, e.g. respecting ancestors, seniors, bureaucrats)


Focus today: denomination in East Asian origin and Western origin values surveys


Syncreticism would predict low proportionsBecoming adult in highly secularized times too?

Check proportions and generational cleavages

AB Asia Barometer 2003AnB Asian Barometer 2001-2003

EAVS East Asian Values Survey 2002-2004WVS World Values Survey 2000-2002

ISSP Intern. Social Survey Programme Reli. Module II 1998


The issue of wording


AB Regard yourself to belong to any particular religion?

AnBWhat is your religion?

EAVSDo you have a personal religious faith?

WVSDo you belong to a religious denomination?

ISSPWhat is your religious preference?


Proportions(% mentions denomination)


AB (Japan 26, China 10, S-Korea 60)

AnB(Japan 47, HK 41, S-Korea 52, Mainland China 12, Taiwan 84 )

EAVS(Japan 24, Beijing 9, Shanghai 19 Kunming 20, Hangzhou 20

Taiwan 75, S-Korea 51, Singapore 80)WVS

(China 6, Japan 41, S-Korea 63, Singapore 89)ISSP

(Japan 33 [only])


Generational cleavages in denomination?Overall: the younger, the less

Yet, cleavages, even if significant, weak (Eta2 <.05)


AB(In Japan & S-Korea)

(Not in China)AnB

(In Japan, HK, S-Korea,Taiwan)(Not in mainland China)

EAVS(In Japan, Shanghai, HK, Taiwan & Singapore)

(Not in Beijing, Kunming, Hangzhou & S-Korea) WVS

(In Japan [strong], S-Korea and Singapore)(Not in China)

ISSP(In Japan [strong])


Other important factors?


Impact religious variables: beliefs, importance, religiosityImpact demographics: generation membership, education

Impact general context: nation/city indicatorsImpact cultural context: traditional (Eeast Asian) values


On traditional (east Asian) valuesAfter several factor analyses/dataset


ABDesired accomplishments of sons/daugthers:

fame: great scholar, power, wealth, respected personrelatedness: charitable, caring about family, good marriage partner

AnBPreservation: loose face working women boss, hiring less qualified relative

Harmony: put personal interests 2nd, not insist own opinion, accommodate in conflictEAVS

Gender roles: need son, wife follow husband, men work outside women inside homeRespect ancestors: respect ancestors, eldest son look after aging parents

WVSGender roles: working mother relates to child, housewife fulfilling

Piety: goal is to make parents proud, regardless faults respect parentsISSP

Gender roles: husband earn money wife look after home, family suffers if women work


Traditional (east Asian) valuesA matter of culture


Country-city of origin info most importantChina/Chinese cities and S-Korea most supportive traditional values

Except gender roles: China less traditional

Relationship with religious variables is weakNo virtuous canopy?

Young and higher educated least supportiveEspecially as regards preservation & gender roles

Harmony and relatedness daughters unaffectedUniversals?


DenominationA matter of religion


Exp(B) AB AnB EAVS WVS ISSP

Step 1: religious variables

Religiosity Importance Beliefs, importance, religiosity

Importance, religiosity

Beliefs, importance, religiosity

R2 ,12 ,06 ,61 ,50 ,35

Step 2: add cohorts and education

Idem and cohort 1970+

Idem and cohorts 1945-1970; 1970+, education

Idem and education

Idem and both cohorts, education

Idem and both cohorts, education

R2 ,13 ,09 ,62 ,53 ,40

Step 3: add nation/city

Idem and China, South Korea (SK)

Idem and Hong Kong (HK), SK and Taiwan

Idem, and Chinese cities, Singapore (SGP) SK and Taiwan

Idem and China and SK

(Japan only)

R2 ,34 ,23 ,66 ,61 -


DenominationStill a matter of religion


Exp(B) AB AnB EAVS WVS ISSP

Step 3: religious variables, demogra-phics and nation/city

Religiosity, cohort 1970+, China, SK

Importance, both cohorts, education, HK, SK, Taiwan

Beliefs, importance, religiosity, cohort 1970+, education, Chinese cities, SGP, SK, Taiwan

Importance, religiosity, both cohorts, and China and SK

Religiosity, both cohorts, education

R2 ,34 ,23 ,66 ,61 ,40

Step 4: add traditional values

Idem and fame son

Idem (ex HK) and preservation, harmony

Idem and gender roles

Idem Idem

R2 ,35 (ns) ,24 (ns) ,66 (ns) ,61 (ns) ,40 (ns)


ConclusionsDenomination a matter of religion


Especially religiosityCulture of origin important if little known about religious variables

Generational information hardly adds explanatory power

PreliminarySeeking to bring together East Asian scholars

suggesting, debating and testing the best measurements

WhyWould benefit academia: what is universal, particular in key religious concepts

Would benefit publics: unaddressed concerns, responsiveness politics

Documents

Religion and traditional values in East Asia